Submarine vessel or driving apparatus.



No. 728,031. PATENTED' MAY 12, 1903.

R. SINCLAIR.

SUBMARINE VESSEL 0R DIVING APPARATUS. APPLIUATION FILED NOV. 24. 1902 N0 MODEL.

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UN S ATES Patented May 12, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE;

SUJBMARINE vE'ssELo R DIVING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 728,031, dated May 12, 1903.

Application filed November 24, 1902- Serial No. 132,649. (No morlelJ To all whom it may concern:

' Be it known that I, RUSSELL SINCLAIR, cone suiting mechanical engineer, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at No. 97 Pitt street, in the city of Sydney and State of New ,-South Wales, in the Commonwealth ofAustralia, have invented new and useful Improvements in Submarine Vessels or Diving Q jfApparatus, of. which the following is a speci- This invention relates to submarine vessels ordiving apparatus'for working upon the seabottom, and it has been specially devised in order that such vessels or diving apparatus t ,maybe easily and efficientlypronelledalong '1 the bottom and has particularreference to such su'bmarinevessels or diving apparatus 7 as'form the subject-matter of United States Patents of the Pacific Pearl Fishing Comzofpany, Limited-namely, No. 581,174, dated Aprilj20, 1897, and No. 622,529, dated April 4,1899; yet while being so applicable to the Iprior inventions just before mentioned these present improvements may be applied to other submarine vessels or diving apparatus adapted to be propelled along the sea-bottom by gialrliual or other power inclosed Within the l These improvements consist in the combio nation, with the casing or shell or hull of the submarine vessel or diving apparatus, of devices or what may be termed grasshoppereg ggii ati thexsideand about midway or just fo'r'ward'of midway of the hull. 'Each grass- 5 hopper-leg consists of a pedal or fork or other formof foot attached to legs or levers connected with a-radius baror lever on the end fofya-shaft or spindle passing throughfi the nterior of the hull. These bearings may have stunting-boxes or glands or ground ballointybutat any rate are water-tight. 0n

the-inner end of the spindle is carried-an op- Z erating lever or handle which may be worked i; by manualror other power.

': In order-that this invention may be clearly y'ufnderstood, reference will now be'made to the 1;drawingsherewith,iin which- .Figurel is a longitudinal elevation of a submarine vesselon divin g: apparatus cannuctedjn-accordance withth'especifications tachedto the patents hereinbefore referred d havingl these-present improvements thimble-nut 7. Externally this bracket-4 has a ball-cup 8 and a keeper-nut 9, which latter has a stuffing-box l0 and gland 11, tightened up by nuts 12. Through the stufling-boxes the spindle 13 passes, a collar 14 thereon having bearing on balls in cup 8. Onthe inside this spindle 13 has a square or key end for a crank-handle 15 or other device for operating it, or the spindle 13 may pass from side to side with one or more cranks between the brackets 4. On the external end of the spindle is keyed the lever or radius-bar 16, knuckle-jointed at 17 to leg or thrust-bar 18, reaching below the bottom'of the hull 3. The leg 18 has a foot or feetadaptcd to grip upon the ground, and,

preferably, these are constructed, as shown, of aseries of combs or teeth 19 of some width firmly afiixed to said legs by bolts 20. In some cases, according to the nature of the sea bottom, it.might be desirable to affix on or under the hull 3 rollers 01' wheels fore and aft or skids or other devices to support its weight and to ease its progress.

Reciprocating motion is imparted by manual or other powerto the crank-handle 15 by operators inside the hull in such a way that,

thevfoot 19 of the grasshopper-leg 18 taking upon the sea-bottom, the hull 3 will be pushed forwardly-that is to say, in an opposite direction to the motion of the inside handlebeing partially liftedatthe same time at front, so that it makes. progress in a kind of hop. The reverse motion of the handle or lever moves the foot 19 of the grasshopper 18 forwardly, so thata fresh grip of the sea-bot- I tom maybe made. 1 Having now particularlydescribed and as- ,certained the nature ofmy said invention and in what manner the same is to be I declare that what I claim is- 1. The combination with a submarine vesperformed,

sel of grasshopper-legs or thrust-bars jointed to radlus-levers adapted to be operated inside said vessel to travel the same in a series of hops substantially as herein described and explained.

2. The combination with a submarine vessel adapted to support itself on ayea-bottom of grasshopper-legs having thereon feet or ends adapted to hold and be thrust against said sea-bottom and move the vessel in a series of hops substantially as herein described and explained.

3. The combination and arrangement with a hull 3 of a bracket 4 having stufing-box 5 gland 6 nut 7 ball-cup 8 nut 9 stuffing-box l0 gland 11 and nuts 12 and a spindle 13 having a collar 14; as and for the purposes set forth substantially as herein described and explained and as illustrated in the drawings.

4. The combination and arrangement with a hull 3 a shaft13 having collar 14 and a suitable water-tight support and bearing for such shaft 13 of radius-lever 16 knuckle-joint 17 and leg 18 having suitable holding-foot as and for the purposes set forth substantially as herein described and explained and as illustrated in the drawings.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

RUSSELL SINCLAIR.

Witnesses:

GAVIN NAISMITH, M. J. CANDRICK. 

